Manufacture of wire rods



(No Model.)

C. W. BILDT. MANUPAGTURB 0F WIRE RODS.

No. 459,924. Patented Sept. 22, 1891.

NITED STATES CARL VILHELM BILDT, OF l/VORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS.

MAN U FACTU RE OF WIRE RODS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 459,924, dated September 22, 1891.

Application filed January 26, 1891. Serial No. 379,000. (llo model.) I

T0 aZZ whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, CARL WILHELM BILDT, of the city and county of Worcester, and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Art or Process of Rolling, Reeling, Pointing, Cleaning, and Coating Vire Rods; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and in which- Figure 1 represents part of a rolling-mill, a Wire-reel, a pointing device, a series of water, acid, and coating tubs with a Wire block or reel in each, and a swinging crane for transferring the coils from one tub to another in carrying out my aforesaid improved process, hereinafter more fully described. Fig. 2 is a vertical section through the rolls of the pointing device, shown upon an enlarged scale; and Fig. 3 is a vertical section through one of the aforesaid tubs and the wire blocks or reels placed therein.

By the old Way of cleaning wire rods much labor and acid are required, the rods being taken from the reel, `placed ina pile, and allowed to cool off before being pointed, cleaned, and coated. This method results in considerable loss of time, and much labor is required in handling. Besides, it takes an unnecessary amount of acid to properly clean the rods, on account of the heavy scale formed upon said rods due to slow cooling.

As is well known, it is impracticable to clean hot rods in acid, the fumes generated thereby making it impossible for the attendants to Work about the same, and the rods when immersed in acid at that temperature have a detrimental effect on the quality of the metal. The purpose of my invention is to overcome these objections.

Said invention consists in rolling, reeling, pointing, cleaning, and coating the rods in rapid succession or continuously in the following manner:

The billets are irst reduced to rods by passing the same through a rolling-mill, as usual, the last two sets of rolls A of which only being shown in this instance. As fast as delivered from said rolling-mill they are automatically coiled upon the usual rotating reel B, then removed from said reel by the tongmen, and one end of the rod taken by an attendant and inserted into the pointing device C, to be pointed also, as usual. The coil is now placed over a movable wire block or reel D suitable for the purpose and placed while said rod is still red-hot into the first tub D, containing Water, which 'cools as well as by the sudden immersion into the cold water,l removes a greater portion of the scale formed upon the rod, the transfer being made, preferably, by means of a suitable hydraulic or other crane H, arranged to swing around on a vertical axis secured at the center of the series of tubs D, D', E, F, and G, which are preferably located in a circle around said axis and in line vertically with the outer end of the arm of the crane, as is shown inthe drawings. Vthen properly cooled in the tub D, the Wire-block with the coil on it is transferred by the crane from said tub to the tub E, which contains acid, to subject the same to the usual acid-cleaning process. It is next lifted out of said acid-tub and placed in tub F, which contains Water, to remove or Wash off the acid preparatory to coating. It is then placed in the tub Gr, containing a solution of lime, meal, flour, salt, or other suitable coating material, and finally removed from said tub and transferred toA the dryhouse preparatory to drawing.

I have described the process of treating only one coil at a time; but it will be understood that in practice the wire blocks or reels which are placed in the tubs are filled with from eight to twelve coils before subjecting the same to the cleaning and coating process, the same being filled from several mills in operation at the same time. To facilitate the process, a duplicate water-tub and block or reel D2 D3 may be employed, so that while the coils are being transferred from the water-tub D to the acidetub E the next set of coils rolled, reeled, and pointed may be placed in the other water-tub and thus save Waste of time. Therefore it is obvious that a continuous process of rolling, reeling, pointing, cleaning, and coating may be constantly kept up, and in consequence resulting in a large saving in time as well as labor, as aforesaid. The rods being cooled before submersion in IOO the acid-cleaning' bath results also in a large saving in acid as well as in a superior product over the old Way of treating wire rods to coat the same for drawing'.

The separate parts or elements which are employed in carrying out my improved process, l am aware, are all old and well understood by those skilled in the art to which my invention appertains, and I therefore limit said invention t0 the combination thereof in effecting the continuous process described, and pointed out in my claim.

As Various Ways may be employed for pointing' the ends ot' the rods, as well as for transferring the coils from one position to another, l do not limitmyself to the particular constructions shown in this instance for CARL WILHELM BILDT. Witnesses:

A. A. BARKER, W. B. NoURsE. 

